Main navigation

Mainstreaming flexible working toolkit

To thrive as an organisation in the new world of work, successful workplace flexibility is crucial. It’s smart business. Simple as that.

Why workplace flexibility matters

Champions share how workplace flexibility supports the attraction and retention of top talent, increased creativity and innovation, and the ability to ensure an agile response to changing market needs.

Our mission for change

Convened by Global Women, Champions for Change is a group of New Zealand CEO’s and Chairs from across the public and private sector who are committed to raising the value of diversity and inclusiveness throughout the wider business community.

With flexibility widely recognised as a key enabler for building diverse and inclusive teams, this toolkit was designed to support organisations in building work cultures that are inclusive and flexible.

Flexibility for all

Workplace flexibility needs to be a broader conversation than the traditional concept of ‘part-time’ work for new mums. Rather, flexibility can mean different things to different people, and can be packaged in many different ways.

There’s no cookie-cutter approach to flexibility, and flexibility in corporate office environments will look very different to flexibility options in an operational context. The discussion on working flexibly, needs to be flexible.

Managing challenges

The prospect of managing teams with flexible working arrangements can be, for some, daunting. Having spent much of the 20th century investing in the maintenance of workplace boundaries – temporal and spatial – it can seem counter intuitive to suggest that it might be best for business if we relaxed those boundaries.

Yet the changing nature of work demands a new form of leadership, and with that, comes a new set of challenges.